Latin American e-commerce and fintech company MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI) reported Q1 CY2026 results beating Wall Street’s revenue expectations, with sales up 49% year on year to $8.85 billion. Its GAAP profit of $8.23 per share was in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.
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MercadoLibre (MELI) Q1 CY2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $8.85 billion vs analyst estimates of $8.36 billion (49% year-on-year growth, 5.8% beat)
- EPS (GAAP): $8.23 vs analyst expectations of $8.20 (in line)
- Adjusted EBITDA: $857 million vs analyst estimates of $849 million (9.7% margin, 0.9% beat)
- Operating Margin: 6.9%, down from 12.9% in the same quarter last year
- Free Cash Flow Margin: 23.5%, down from 54.6% in the previous quarter
- Unique Active Buyers: 84 million, up 17 million year on year
- Market Capitalization: $93.34 billion
Company Overview
Originally started as an online auction platform, MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI) is a one-stop e-commerce marketplace and fintech platform in Latin America.
Revenue Growth
Reviewing a company’s long-term sales performance reveals insights into its quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. Luckily, MercadoLibre’s sales grew at an incredible 40.5% compounded annual growth rate over the last three years. Its growth surpassed the average consumer internet company and shows its offerings resonate with customers, a great starting point for our analysis.
This quarter, MercadoLibre reported magnificent year-on-year revenue growth of 49%, and its $8.85 billion of revenue beat Wall Street’s estimates by 5.8%.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 29.1% over the next 12 months, a deceleration versus the last three years. Still, this projection is eye-popping given its scale and suggests the market is baking in success for its products and services.
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Unique Active Buyers
User Growth
As an online marketplace, MercadoLibre generates revenue growth by increasing both the number of users on its platform and the average order size in dollars.
MercadoLibre struggled with new customer acquisition over the last two years as its unique active buyers have declined by 1.5% annually to 84 million in the latest quarter. This performance isn't ideal because internet usage is secular, meaning there are typically unaddressed market opportunities. If MercadoLibre wants to accelerate growth, it likely needs to enhance the appeal of its current offerings or innovate with new products. 
Luckily, MercadoLibre added 17 million unique active buyers in Q1, leading to 25.4% year-on-year growth. The quarterly print was higher than its two-year result, suggesting its new initiatives are accelerating user growth.
Revenue Per User
Average revenue per user (ARPU) is a critical metric to track because it measures how much the company earns in transaction fees from each user. ARPU also gives us unique insights into a user’s average order size and MercadoLibre’s take rate, or "cut", on each order.
MercadoLibre’s ARPU growth has been exceptional over the last two years, averaging 77.7%. Although its unique active buyers shrank during this time, the company’s ability to successfully increase monetization demonstrates its platform’s value for existing users. 
This quarter, MercadoLibre’s ARPU clocked in at $105.30. It grew by 18.9% year on year, slower than its user growth.
Key Takeaways from MercadoLibre’s Q1 Results
We enjoyed seeing MercadoLibre increase its number of users this quarter. We were also glad its revenue outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, we think this was a solid quarter with some key areas of upside. The market seemed to be hoping for more, and the stock traded down 8.2% to $1,726 immediately after reporting.
Is MercadoLibre an attractive investment opportunity at the current price? If you’re making that decision, you should consider the bigger picture of valuation, business qualities, as well as the latest earnings. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
